An England fan who faced a possible jail sentence for entering the team's dressing room at the World Cup was freed today.

Charges against Pavlos Joseph, 32, were dropped after he paid a 750-rand (£65) admission of guilt fine, but he will still go home with a criminal record.

The case against a British journalist accused of harbouring the fan who entered the England dressing room was adjourned until next week.

Joseph, from Crystal Palace, south-east London, claimed he was looking for a toilet after England's match against Algeria in Cape Town when a security guard sent him in the direction of the players' tunnel.

The mortgage adviser said he took a wrong turn and found himself in the changing room, where he told David Beckham: "David, we've spent a lot of money getting here. This is a disgrace. What are you going to do about it?"

Joseph said that when Beckham asked him who he was, he responded: "I'm Pavlos and I actually need the toilet."

Joseph was accused of breaching the Fifa World Cup Special Measures Act by walking into an area without being in possession of the necessary accreditation. He was charged with two offences carrying a maximum penalty of six months in prison or an unlimited fine.

He did not attend Cape Town magistrates' court today after pleading guilty to being in an area without authorisation. His defence lawyer, Craig Webster, told the court an agreement had been reached with prosecutors that the trespassing charges against his client should be withdrawn.

"The director of public prosecutions has decided to withdraw the charges on the basis that an admission of guilt fine is paid," Webster said. "A 750 rand fine was paid by the accused yesterday."

Joseph's passport was returned to him. Local newspapers in south-east London have reported that he can expect a "hero's welcome" when he returns home.

Joseph was interviewed by Simon Wright, a journalist at the Sunday Mirror, shortly after the 18 June incident. Wright, 44, was arrested yesterday at Cape Town international airport.

He appeared in court today accused of defeating the ends of justice and flouting the immigration act by providing false information about a place of accommodation. Wearing a blue jacket, open-collar shirt and jeans, Wright listened intently to proceedings.

William Booth, defending, told the court: "My client is from the UK and would like the matter completed as soon as possible. My client feels that there is no basis to the charges."

He said he had not yet received a formal charge sheet laying out the details of the prosecution case.

Booth addressed comments made by the national police commissioner, General Bheki Cele, in which he appeared to suggest the dressing room incident was "orchestrated" by the journalist.

He said his client felt "rather aggrieved" at the comments, which should not have been made.

Magistrate Grant Engel adjourned the case to 7 July and Wright, whose passport has been seized, was released on bail. As he left the court he was surrounded by photographers and camera crews but made no comment.

For weeks there has been a strained relationship between South African police and some sections of the British media, who have been accused of writing "nasty" things about the World Cup hosts.

Speaking at a briefing to journalists in Pretoria on Tuesday, Cele said: "The police have reason to believe this incident was orchestrated, and involved the co-operation of a number of individuals. The police strongly believe the motive was to put the World Cup security in a bad light, and possibly to profit from this act."

The Sunday Mirror has said this is "entirely false" and their reporter had no dealings with Joseph before he entered the England changing room. Other British journalists support Wright's story, arguing that other Sunday newspapers had been offered the exclusive by Joseph.

Outside court today , Booth was asked further about Cele's allegations. "The national commissioner has made some comments which have obviously been reported throughout the world and they impact on my client's future as a journalist of many years," he said. "We'll be addressing those issues. We regard this as being serious and we will be submitting that they should not have been made at this point in time."

Booth added: "We would like to know the basis for those comments and what evidence there is to substantiate those kinds of comments. We feel the matter is sub judice and the comments should not have been made."

He added that at the stage of the newspaper interview there was no warrant out for Joseph's arrest. "There was no intention at all to harbour a fugitive from justice."

Mthunzi Mhaga, a spokesman for the national prosecuting authority, said the charges against the journalist were more weighty than against the fan. "We view defeating the ends of justice in a very serious light – more serious than in the case of Joseph," he said.

The intrusion, which happened minutes after Princes William and Harry left the dressing room, prompted the Football Association to make an official complaint to World Cup organiser Fifa. William later laughed off the incident.

• This article was amended on 1 July 2010, to make clear in a sub-heading and the story text that the South African police accusation against journalist Simon Wright of the Daily Mirror is that he harboured the disgruntled fan, Pavlos Joseph, who entered the England team's dressing room.